Young software professionals these days prefer acquiring an MBA after a successful date with the CAT. This they feel is a productive alternative to a lifetime with a mouse. In fact the percentage of working professionals taking CAT has grown appreciably over the past years first by bridging its gap with freshers who take CAT and now going past them.

Speaking to DC-Education, C.P.Vasan, head, Career Launcher, Chennai, said about 60 per cent of the CAT takers already have lucrative software jobs. These working professionals, who are programmers at these IT majors, are keen to change their job profile from technology to management after getting tired of coding in 15 months.

The feeling that they can grow exponentially in five years if they get into one of top B-schools is the decision influencer. The fact that people who join these IT majors after a stint at the IIMs are on a lucrative remuneration acts as a catalyst.

The euphoria of getting placed while in the final year of their colleges slowly evaporates after joining their prospective employers. By the passing time these so called working professionals start nurturing ambitions of becoming managers. In this Liberalisation, Privatisation and Globalization (LPG) era, there are abundant requirements of managerial candidates and every working professional vying for the same is not a surprise.

The ideal way of becoming a manager is to take CAT, get into IIMs and come back with a bang as a Manager. Most B-schools take MBA aspirants with work experience; this is because a large number of them apply to these B-schools.

There is no defined 'quota' for experienced personnel, nor are they given any 'preference' at any stage of the process. Students with work experience do have a psychological edge in the interview as their interviews tend to focus predominantly on their work (which they should know) whereas fresher interview focus more on academics (not everyone's strength).